STYLE: Butterfly/stand-up hybrid. Doesn't so much play the puck as he does the percentages of positioning.STRENGTHS: At 6'4", one of the largest in the league, Burke can be an imposing target for shooters. Good positioning skills; he often lets the "puck find the glove". Excellent attitude, highly coachable. At his best when he is aggressive and low in his crouch. WEAKNESSES: Inconsistent. Gives up five-hole and low glove side goals. Needs to work on stickhandling, although - to his credit - he doesn't overdo his outlet attempts. Bad back gives him problems from time to time, and he doesn't recover following a scramble as well as smaller goaltenders.

(Click on each section header to open (or to close) items in that section)

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING:

"One NHL general manager claims he's the best goalie prospect from junior hockey in at least a dozen years. (Frank Orr, Toronto Star, March 12, 1985).

"With Sean Burke in goal the Devils can be as good as any team in the league. When Burke arrived on the scene March 1, fresh from the 1988 Canadian Olympic team, the Devils finally came together as a team. (The Hockey News 1988-89 Yearbook, p. 58)

"The team's best player. Four of his 10 career shutouts came last year. (ESPN Hockey 96, p. 85)

"[Goaltending] is one area [Whalers GM Jim] Rutherford won't have to lose sleep over until the summer of 1998. That's when Burke becomes an unrestricted free agent. Until then, he will continue to be Hartford's undisputed No. 1 netminder. Burke deservedly was voted the team's MVP for the third consecutive season; still, he has little to show for his efforts during that span, failing to see the reward of postseason action...Handling the bulk of goaltending duties (66 games, including 22 consecutive starts at one point), Burke was a model of consistency. (The Sporting News Hockey Yearbook 1996-97, p. 46)

"Sean Burke is inconsistent, but considering the team he plays behind we'll give him the benefit of the doubt. He's great at times, but in key situations he is at times...brutal. For example he allowed six goals on 21 shots in a must-win game against the Islanders; two of those goals were shorthanded markers on the same penalty. (The Sports Forecaster Hockey '97-'98, p. 83)

"Sean Burke, who missed 23 games due to various injuries, was voted the team's MVP for the fourth consecutive season. He compiled a 22-22-6 record with a 2.69 goals against record and has incentive to do better next season since he's entering the final year of his contract. The Hockey News 1997-98 Yearbook, p. 89)

"Burke was incredibly streaky last year and he had to play every game he could. (The Sports Forecaster Hockey '97-'98, p. 49)

"If this were last season, acquiring Burke (2.69 goals-against average in 51 games for a bad Whalers team) might have been enough to guarantee the Flyers would win the Stanley Cup. He certainly has never had the propensity of letting in the soft goals Ron Hextall and Garth Snow did in the Finals against Detroit that put the Flyers in an early hole in each game." (Larry Wigge, The Sporting News, March 16, 1998, p. 76)

"He's had a tough year with all the trades and layoffs. But I think when he's on top of his game, he can still be one of the top goalies in the game. (Glen Wesley, ESPN Sportszone, April 1998)

"Still a No. 1 goalie, Burke appeared in 59 games last year, the third highest single-season total of his career. One of the tallest goaltenders in the league. Burke has been plagued by back spasms throughout his playing days and missed a handful of games last season because of a hip flexor. The tall, stand-up goaltender has to try and overcome huge bouts of inconsistency. Can carry a team for weeks, but can struggle for equal periods of time. He's still the No. 1 man on the Panthers' depth chart. (The Sports Forecaster 1999-2000, p. 136)

"Burke is injury prone, which, at this stage of his career, becomes a problem for a team that's looking for a No. 1 goaltender. The lanky vet is one of the NHL's last, pure stand-up goaltenders [sic] - an intimidating sight for forwards due to his height. Burke still holds aspirations of being the main man in nets but look for his workload to diminish this season. Hopefully, he doesn't run into back and groin problems again. (The Sports Forecaster 2000-01, p. 216)

"If Burke can have an injury-free season, he still may have a few years ahead of him. A good team player that knows the position, he could be ideal in an organization looking for a veteran presence to help teach their young stoppers the ropes. (The Sports Forecaster Online 2000-01)

"Considered a consolation prize when the Coyotes could not agree to terms with Nikolai Khabibulin, Burke responded with a stellar 2000-01 season, setting career marks in goals-against average and save percentage. While he does have trouble getting back to his feet once he's down, Burke is most effective when using his large frame to cut down angles and challenge shooters. At 34, Burke will be expected to handle the No. 1 goaltending duties in the desert again. He may not have much longer at the top of the depth chart but another year or two is not out of the question." (The Sports Forecaster 2001-02, p. 214)

"The big netminder has found a home in the desert. The Coyotes' undisputed MVP two years in a row, he finished fourth in Hart Trophy balloting last season and third in the race for the Vezina. Burke accumulated the sixth-best save percentage in the league and collected five shutouts. The 35-year-old is a workhorse - the type of veteran goaltender the young Coyotes can lean heavily on. He has intimidating size but is also very quick for such a big man. With Brian Boucher on board, the Coyotes may give Burke more rest this season. The hope is that he can be fresher come playoff time." (The Sports Forecaster 2002-03, p. 208)

"The Flyers let Burke go mainly due to the emergence of rookie Antero Niittymaki. Burke is still a capable backup goalie, but his starter days look to be a thing of the past. He has been a good mentor for other young netminders, so the Lightning hope he can do the same thing for John Grahame." (The Sports Forecaster 2005-06, p. 99)

TRANSACTIONS:

Selected by New Jersey Devils as underage junior in second round (second Devils pick, 24th overall) of National Hockey League entry draft, June 15, 1985.

Rated #26 in Hockey Stars Presents "The Top 50 Netminders in Pro Hockey", November 1993.

Voted Hartford Whalers team Most Valuable Player, 1993-94.

Rated #16 in Hockey Stars Presents "The Top 50 Netminders in Pro Hockey", November 1994.

Named National Hockey League Player of the Week, recording a 2-0-1 record and a 1.62 GAA, including a 26-save performance that ended the Pittsburgh Penguins' 13-game unbeaten streak, Febraury 13-19, 1995.

Finished eighth in voting for Vezina Trophy, 1994-95.

Finished fourth in voting for National Hockey League All-Star team, 1994-95.

Voted Hartford Whalers team Most Valuable Player, 1994-95.

Finalist for Masterton Trophy, 1994-95.

Rated #8 in Hockey Stars Presents "The Top 50 Netminders in Pro Hockey", November 1995.

Voted Hartford Whalers team Most Valuable Player, 1995-96.

Voted Hartford Whalers team Most Valuable Player, 1996-97.

Played in National Hockey League All-Star Game, 2001.

Named to The Sporting News All-Star Second Team, 2000-01.

Named National Hockey League Player of the Month (9-1-0, 1.70 GAA, 1 ShO), March 2002.

Finalist, Lester B. Pearson Award, 2001-02.

Finalist, Vezina Trophy, 2001-02.

MILESTONES:

Played in 500th National Hockey League game, vs. Buffalo, January 18, 1999.

Sean won his 300th National Hockey League game on February 14, 2004, in a 6-2 Philadelphia win over the New York Rangers. "Wins and losses is not really an individual stat," said Burke. "I guess it means for me that I've been around quite a while and I've been fortunate enough to be able to win some games. I think you look back on those things more when you're done playing then while you're playing. It was Burke's second start for the Flyers, and he became the twentieth goaltender to reach the milestone.

INJURIES:

Injured groin, December 1988.

Underwent arthroscopic surgery to right knee, September 5, 1989.

Sprained ankle; missed seven games, December 27, 1992.

Suffered back spasms; missed remainder of season, March 13, 1993.

Pulled hamstring; missed seven games, September 29, 1993.

Reinjured hamstring; missed fourteen games, October 27, 1993.

Suffered back spasms; missed one game, December 23, 1993.

Strained groin; missed two games, February 28, 1995.

Suffered back spasms; missed two games, November 19, 1995.

Suffered back spasms; missed three games, February 7, 1996.

Dislocated thumb; missed nineteen games, November 30, 1996.

Strained hip flexor; missed one game, February 26, 1997.

Suffered lower back spasms; missed six games, March 8, 1998.

Strained hip flexor; missed final three games of season, April 10, 1999.

Left Canada's semifinal game against the Czech Republic with an undisclosed lower-body injury, May 9, 2003.

Groin injury; missed eight games, October 29, 2005.

Fractured finger; missed seven games, March 16, 2006.

Left game with dehydration, January 20, 2007.

NHL PENALTY SHOTS:

DATE

SHOOTER

GOAL?

NOTES

02/02/1989

Luc Robitaille

N

01/21/1995

Michal Pivonka

N

03/08/1996

Wayne Presley

N

04/03/1996

Brian Bradley

N

03/22/1998

Kevin Stevens

N

11/18/1999

Terry Yake

N

01/10/2000

Brad Isbister

Y

10/27/2001

Greg de Vries

N

01/27/2004

Shean Donovan

Y

11/25/2005

Brian Gionta

N

NHL SHOOTOUTS:

DATE

DEC

OPPONENT

GF

GA

10/16/2005

L

Washington

1

2

Alexander Ovechkin

Petr Sykora

11/15/2005

L

Washington

0

1

Alexander Ovechkin

Brian Willsie

01/31/2006

W

Toronto

2

0

Mats Sundin

Alexei Ponikarovsky

04/06/2006

W

Atlanta

2

1

Vyacheslav Kozlov

Ilya Kovalchuk

Marian Hossa

04/14/2006

L

Carolina

0

1

Eric Staal

Matt Cullen

02/06/2007

L

Tampa Bay

1

3

Vincent Lecavalier

Brad Richards

Martin St. Louis

02/18/2007

W

Anaheim

3

2

Ryan Getzlaf

Teemu Selanne

Corey Perry

Chris Kunitz

Andy McDonald

Rob Niedermayer

02/24/2007

W

Colorado

4

3

Marek Svatos

Milan Hejduk

Joe Sakic

Paul Stastny

Brett McLean

Andrew Brunette

03/15/2007

L

Chicago

2

3

Jason Williams

Martin Havlat

Jeffrey Hamilton

Denis Arkhipov

Tuomo Ruutu

Patrick Sharp

Nikita Alexeev

DID YOU KNOW?

Sean was ejected from the OHL game between the Toronto Marlboros and Cornwall Royals after fighting with counterpart Steve Titus Titus skated the length of the ice to engage Burke, who was squaring off with (future NHLer) Mike Stapleton.

On March 9, 2007, Sean stopped fifty-one shots in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings.

Game logs have been compiled using the best information that I can find; for a detailed list of known concerns, please click here. I am always looking for assistance in making these more accurate, and welcome your help. For the 1983-84 season and prior, one of my key sources was the Hockey Summary Project, a tremendous resource and one of the best data collections on the Internet. In return, I have attempted to make these data better where possible.